Braille Monitor                                             February 2015

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Training the Trainers Who Bring Braille to the Blind

On December 11 fifty members of the National Federation of the Blind traveled to Baltimore to plan, brainstorm, and dream about the NFB BELL program in the summer of 2015, which will be held in twenty-four states around the country. Six states—Connecticut, Rhode Island, Nebraska, Minnesota, Hawaii, and Kentucky—will host the NFB BELL program for the first time in the summer of 2015. At the seminar participants shared their knowledge about how to manage the various logistics of the program so that it runs smoothly for the students. Participants also spent time familiarizing themselves with the robust curriculum and trading ideas about how to implement different aspects of the lessons for students of varying abilities. Brainstorming sessions focused on how to incorporate the transition to UEB into the program as well as how to bolster the content related to nonvisual graphic literacy. And, of course, participants had to try out some of the new games and activities incorporated into the newest version of the curriculum; our NFB BELL coordinators are all kids at heart! Everyone had a great time and left energized and ready to plan another summer of Braille fun.

Tamala Young, Tammy Robar, and Lisa Craig participate in a make-and-take activity. They are creating a file folder game called “mini Braille Twister” by affixing chair leg cushions to file folders to create a large tactile Braille cell.
Tamala Young (OK), Tammy Robar (HI), and Lisa Craig (HI) create boards for a game called “mini Braille Twister.”

In another make-and-take session Martha Harris, Lisa Craig, and Daphne Mitchell (you can only see the back of her head) are making candy necklaces/bracelets using Twizzlers Pull ‘n’ Peel, Froot Loops, and Life Savers.
Martha Harris (MN), Lisa Craig (HI), Daphne Mitchell (NM) making candy necklaces/bracelets using Twizzlers Pull ‘n’ Peel, Froot Loops, and Life Savers.

Ellen Bedford, Kathryn Webster, and Joy Scott participate in one of the “Taste of NFB BELL” sessions, playing Braille Twister. People-sized tactile Braille cells were created on the floor using Poly Spots (that’s the official term for these little rubber discs that PE teachers usually use to mark bases or spots on the floor for various games). In this game, participants use parts of their body, like in Twister, to mark dots to create Braille letters, contractions, or other symbols. In this picture they are using their feet to make the letter “b.”
Ellen Bedford (CT), Kathryn Webster (CT), and Joy Scott (NC) use their feet to make the letter “b” in a round of Braille Twister.

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